Some lucky souls play the odds, but others stack the deck for the sake of putting on a show. These canny entertainers live by the saying, “Fortune favors the bold,” and they profit by it in both reputation and compensation.
The magician is an archetype of the gambler class.
Archetype Main Ability Scores:
The magician mainly focuses on DEX and STR for combat and CHA for their class features.
Archetype Feature Replacements:
1st – Phantom Roll. 2nd – Gambler Talent, Professional Gambler. 3rd – MGP, Slots. 4th – Gambler Talent, Gambit. 5th – Coin Toss, Press Your Luck. 6th – Gambler Talent. 7th – Gambit, Lucky Sevens. 8th – Gambler Talent, Read ‘Em Like a Book. 10th – Gambler Talent, Gambit, Double or Nothing. 11th – Snake Eye. 12th – Gambler Talent, Ace in the Hole. 13th – Gambit. 14th – Gambler Talent. 15th – Crooked Cards. 16th – Gambler Talent, Gambit. 18th – Gambler Talent. 19th – Gambit. 20th – Gambler Talent, Felicity.
Spellcasting
At 1st level, a magician gains the ability to cast illusion spells, which are drawn from the illusionist spell list. A magician begins play with three 1st-level illusion spells of his choice. The magician also selects a number of additional 1st-level spells equal to his Charisma modifier to add to his list of spells. Each time a character attains a new gambler level, he gains two spells of his choice to add to his list of spells. The free spells must be of spell levels he can cast. Like most spellcasters, a magician can find or purchase scrolls with spells to add to his repertoire.
To learn or cast a spell, the magician must have an Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level (Cha 11 for 1st-level spells, Cha 12 for 2nd-level spells, and so forth). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a magician’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the magician’s Charisma modifier. In addition, a magician gains additional MP for having a high attribute (Charisma—see Table: Bonus MP per Day (by Spell Level) on the MP System page).
Table: 3/4th MP Progression
| Level | Base MP | Spell Level |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2 | 1st |
| 2nd | 3 | 1st |
| 3rd | 4 | 1st |
| 4th | 5 | 2nd |
| 5th | 6 | 2nd |
| 6th | 8 | 2nd |
| 7th | 10 | 3rd |
| 8th | 13 | 3rd |
| 9th | 16 | 3rd |
| 10th | 20 | 4th |
| 11th | 24 | 4th |
| 12th | 29 | 4th |
| 13th | 34 | 5th |
| 14th | 39 | 5th |
| 15th | 45 | 5th |
| 16th | 51 | 6th |
| 17th | 57 | 6th |
| 18th | 64 | 6th |
| 19th | 71 | 6th |
| 20th | 79 | 6th |
This ability replaces phantom roll, coin toss, snake eye, crooked cards, and felicity.
Gambler Talents (Ex and Su)
Whenever the magician would gain a gambler talent, he can also select from the following:
- Cantrips: You gain the ability to cast cantrips, or 0-level spells, for the illusion school of magic. These function as any other spell but do not consume MP and can be cast at will. Upon selecting this talent, you learn four cantrips of your choice from the illusion school. This talent may be selected multiple times, with each additional selection granting an additional two cantrips.
- Prestidigitation (Ex): Whenever you are performing for an audience of more than 4 (if in combat, then in the presence of 4 or more enemies), you may add a +2 circumstance bonus to your Perform skill check rolls for every five gambler levels you possess.
This ability modifies gambler talents.
Professional Performer (Ex)
At 2nd level, the magician adds half his gambler level to all Bluff, Escape Artist, Perform, and Sleight of Hand skill checks.
This ability replaces professional gambler.
Luck Pool (Su)
At 3rd level, the magician gains a reservoir of luck points that he can draw upon to fuel his abilities.
The luck pool contains a number of points equal to the magician’s gambler level + his Charisma modifier, and it refreshes once per day after the magician rests for 8 hours.
The magician can use these points in various ways, including class features gained as he levels up. As a swift action, the magician may expend 1 luck point to reroll a d20 when attempting a Use Magic Device skill check to activate a wand.
This ability replaces MGP.
Watch Me Pull a Rabbit Out of My Hat (Su)
Also at 3rd level, every magician’s act gains a touch of whimsical charm, as no performance is complete without a top hat and the surprise of a hidden fuzzy companion.
As long as the magician is wearing a hat or headgear, he can attempt to summon a creature by expending 1 luck point as a standard action and making a Sleight of Hand skill check. This check is opposed by the closest enemy’s Perception roll, with a –5 penalty applied to the magician’s check for every size category the summoned creature exceeds Small.
If the magician succeeds on the check, he summons a creature (or creatures) as per the Summon Monster spell, using his gambler level as his caster level. The spell’s magnitude is limited to a quarter of the magician’s level, rounded down.
This ability replaces slots.
Tricks of the Trade (Su)
Wand Handling (Su): By expending 1 luck point as a free action, you may cast a spell from a wand without counting it towards the wand’s remaining uses.
A magician never reveals his secrets, which means that his audience hasn’t a clue how he accomplishes his favorite spectacles. At 2nd level, a magician gains one magician trick. He gains an additional magician trick every even level thereafter. A magician cannot select an individual magician trick more than once. Magician tricks require a magician to spend at least one luck point unless otherwise noted.
- Blind Cut (Su): By spending a luck point, as a swift action, the magician invites a designated opponent to make an attack of opportunity against him with a -6 penalty. If the attack misses, the magician may either respond with an attack of his own with a +2 enhancement bonus, or he may force the opponent to move up to 10 feet to a position of the magician’s choosing.
- Flourish (Ex): By spending a luck point, the magician may select a target and use the Perform skill as a standard action. By meeting a DC of 10 + the target’s CR, the magician can force the target to make a Will save (DC 10 + half the gambler’s level + his Charisma modifier). If the target fails the save, the target is inflicted with the Fascinated status for a number of rounds equal to the magician’s Charisma modifier.
- Gimmick (Ex): By spending a luck point, the magician may treat his held melee weapon as if he had the warrior’s Chosen Weapon class feature, treating his gambler level as his effective warrior level for a number of rounds equal to his Charisma modifier. Activating this ability requires a swift action.
- Magic Dust (Su): By spending a luck point, the magician may, as an immediate action, provide a +2 circumstance bonus to an ally’s save or skill check within 30 feet. Once the magician reaches 12th level, this circumstance bonus becomes a +4.
- Magician’s Deck (Su): The magician uses what tricks he knows to suffuse his Throwing Cards with magic. He may, as a swift action, spend 1 luck point to grant all of his throwing cards a +1 enhancement bonus for 1 minute. For every four levels beyond 2nd the cards gain another +1 enhancement bonus, to a maximum of +5 at 18th level. These bonuses can be added to the cards, stacking with existing enhancements to a maximum of +5. Multiple uses of this ability do not stack with themselves. These bonuses cannot be used to add special abilities to the cards.
- Palm (Ex): By spending a luck point, the magician can use Sleight of Hand as a free action and act as though he had the Greater Steal feat until the end of his next turn. If the magician already has Greater Steal, this effect stacks with it.
- Peek (Su): As a swift action, the magician may spend a number of luck points up to his Charisma modifier; for the duration of minutes equal to the number of luck points expended, the magician gains the effects of True Seeing.
- Riffle (Ex): As part of a normal attack action, the magician may attack a number of opponents with his Throwing Cards equal to the number of luck points he spends, up to his Charisma modifier.
- Shell Game (Su): By spending a luck point, the magician may switch places with an adjacent creature (whether enemy or ally) as a move action; doing so provides the magician with a +2 Dexterity enhancement bonus until the end of his next turn. A moved ally also gains a +2 Dexterity enhancement bonus until the end of the ally’s next turn, while a moved enemy receives a -2 Dexterity penalty until the end of its next turn.
- Stack (Ex): By spending a luck point, as a swift action, the magician may maximize his Throwing Cards damage value for the next time that the magician uses his cards to attack an enemy. If his next attack misses, the maximized damage persists until the magician makes a successful attack.
- Wand Handling (Su): By spending 1 luck point as a free action, the magician may cast a spell from a wand without counting it towards the wand’s remaining uses.
This ability replaces gambits.
Nothing Up My Sleeves (Su)
At 5th level, the magician’s mastery of sleight of hand and conjuration allows him to hide his belongings in an extradimensional space, seemingly producing them from thin air.
The magician’s sleeves function as a Bag of Holding I. This extradimensional space increases in capacity to a Bag of Holding II at 15th level.
Additionally, the magician can draw or stow items from his sleeves as a free action, provided that the item can fit in one hand (such as alchemical items, potions, scrolls, or wands).
This ability replaces press your luck.
Now You See Me (Sp)
At 7th level, the magician becomes a savant in the art of misdirection.
The magician may cast Vanish as a spell-like ability by expending 1 luck point as a swift action, using his gambler level as his caster level.
At 12th level, he may cast Vanishga as a spell-like ability instead by expending 2 luck points as a swift action.
This ability replaces lucky sevens and ace in the hole.
Grand Escape (Ex)
At 8th level, the magician’s unparalleled skill in escapology allows him to slip free from peril with dramatic flair.
When subjected to a magical effect that would render him helpless, or otherwise restrict usage of his actions while still remaining conscious (such as being stunned, paralyzed, or slowed), the magician may attempt an Escape Artist skill check as a swift action. The DC is equal to 10 + 5 per spell level of the effect. If multiple qualifying effects for this ability are present, calculate each DC individually and add them together. On a success, the magician escapes all such effects.
Alternatively, if an enemy declares an attack against him while he is under such an effect, the magician may use this ability as an immediate action, before the attack roll is made. If successful, the magician escapes the effects and imposes a penalty equal to his Charisma modifier on the triggering attack roll. If his Escape Artist check exceeds the DC by 10 or more, he may also reposition himself up to 10 feet away without provoking attacks of opportunity.
The magician may use this ability once per day.
This ability replaces read ’em like a book.